My wife Róisín's career brought us to San Diego where I took on a position for an international non-profit. Later, I then moved on to an executive role at CONNECT, the first business accelerator in San Diego, focusing on early-stage tech and life science startups. There, I was the architect of CONNECT ALL @ the Jacobs Center, the region's first diversity-focused startup accelerator. CONNECT ALL is a partnership between the Mayor, the City of San Diego, and numerous community and business organizations to expand the impact of the innovation boom beyond traditional geographies. I realized that traditional solutions for economic empowerment were not working and in less than three years we took CONNECT ALL from concept to nearly $4M of total funding with a state-of-the-art facility and dedicated staff.

My wife and I currently live in UTC neighborhood of District 1 with our beautiful daughter Emily, and our 6-year-old rescue dog Ralph. However, my story really starts when I was born in New York City as one of four boys. Both of my parents were immigrants from Colombia. My mother landed in New York City at the age of 9 and was raised by her single mother who worked as a head seamstress. My father grew up on mud floors in Colombia until he arrived in the United States on July 3rd, 1982. My father always tells the story of arriving in the US and the next day firecrackers and partiers filled the street - he thought they were all celebrating his arrival.

Shortly after my second birthday, we moved to Houston, Texas. Soon after arriving in Texas our family fell on hard times. I was forced to see my mother ask for food from churches to feed us and I got familiar with the foods that we could buy with our Lone Star Card. To this day, Kix is my favorite cereal. Despite the struggle, my parents never lost sight of the importance of a great education for my brothers and me. When the opportunity arose, they all encouraged me to run for an annual internship for our local congressman that required winning a class-wide election.

After the internship, I knew that I wanted to attend college in D.C. Like many students today. I was confronted with the daunting cost of a college education. I chose George Mason University because it was a public school, but I also had to take on student loans and work to establish residency so that I could qualify for in-state tuition. After graduating, I knew I wanted international experience and had always heard of people referring to the London School of Economics (LSE) as the best school in the world and thought, why couldn’t I go there - so, I applied. I was accepted to get my Masters in Politics and Government. I’ll never forget hearing my mother crying on the phone when I told her.

I stayed in London after completing my masters and worked as a management consultant advising corporations, venture capitalists, and a private equity firm. Eventually, I got a little homesick, so I came back to drive marketing for a venture-backed startup in the Bay Area, which eventually led me to San Diego. We are proud to call San Diego home and are humbled by the opportunity to serve the residents of District 1.

Learn more about my story and what I've been working on by watching my Creative Mornings SD talk...

I was born in New York City and grew up in Houston, one of four boys. Both of my parents were immigrants from Colombia. Soon after arriving in Texas our family fell into hard times. Despite the struggle, my parents never lost sight of the importance of a great education for my brothers and me.

After serving as a congressional intern, I knew that I wanted to attend college in Washington D.C.. I attended George Mason University where I received a degree in political science. After graduating, I was accepted to the London School of Economics to complete my masters.

I chose to stay in London and worked as a management consultant advising corporations and venture capitalists. I returned home to drive marketing for a venture-backed startup in the Bay Area. My wife’s career brought us to San Diego where I took on a role for an international non-profit. Most recently, I was an executive at CONNECT where I was the architect of CONNECT ALL @ the Jacobs Center the regions first diversity-focused business accelerator. In less than three years we took CONNECT ALL from concept to nearly $4M of total funding with a state-of-the-art facility and dedicated staff.

My wife Róisín and I live in the University City community of District 1 with our beautiful daugher Emily, and our 5-year-old rescue dog Ralph.

Learn more about my story by watching my Creative Mornings SD talk below...

Embracing innovation is one of the most important factors in building an economy that works for everyone in our city. I have seen first-hand the impact that fostering innovation has on economic growth. At the City Council, I intend to find creative new ways to harness and invest in the human capital here and make sure that is at the heart of the jobs engine for all San Diegans. It's critical that we also work closely with our education institutions like UCSD to make sure we equip the next generation of job seekers with the skills they need to be successful.

I recognize that there is no greater treasure than where we call home. I believe we are ready to make the uncomfortable decisions today so that future generations of San Diegans can live comfortably tomorrow. As a member of the City Council, I would make it my priority to implement Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) with maximum efficiency ensuring clean and affordable energy for our residents. In addition, I believe the current Climate Action Plan (CAP) can be a gold standard for cities around the country and I will ensure that the provisions of the CAP are met on-time. I will never lose sight of the enormous climate challenges that we face, but I also believe that we can all contribute by making small changes in our everyday life. I will ensure additional funding for education programs that highlight the impacts of climate change and how we can do our part to mitigate the effects.

My family currently rents in University City and knows first-hand the struggle it is to try and purchase a house in San Diego. As a City Councilmember, I will make it my mission to ensure that we simplify the process to allow residents to develop Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) and to increase our overall housing supply without compromising our environment. I also believe that homeowners living on-site should be allowed to rent their extra rooms as an alternative income stream, however speculators looking to create pop-up hotels should not be allowed to circumvent existing zoning laws.

The most important job of the City Council is the safety and security of the residents. I strongly support legislation like AB298 which explores a home purchase assistance program that recognizes the need for first responders to be able to live within the communities they serve. I look forward to leveraging my experience in innovation to bring cutting-edge technology to increase public safety, making sure our communities are safer and our tax dollars go further.

A strong infrastructure is the backbone of a strong economy. Working through the City and SANDAG, I would make sure that the infrastructure needs of tomorrow are prioritized today. We invested a lot in bringing the trolley to District 1, we must now invest in local connective networks to maximize the trolley’s utility and ensure that it is accessible for all of our residents and not just those who live closest. Beyond the mega projects, I will not forget the everyday needs of our community. I will focus on upgrading our existing parks, libraries, and pools. We also need to fill the potholes, make sure our bridges are safe, our sidewalks are maintained, bike paths are upgraded, and that there are enough EV charging stations.

I recognize that there is no greater treasure than where we call home. I believe we are ready to make the uncomfortable decisions today so that future generations of San Diegans can live comfortably tomorrow. As a member of the City Council, I would make it my priority to implement Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) with maximum efficiency ensuring clean and affordable energy for our residents. In addition, I believe the current Climate Action Plan (CAP) can be a gold standard for cities around the country and I will ensure that the provisions of the CAP are met on-time. I will never lose sight of the enormous climate challenges that we face, but I also believe that we can all contribute by making small changes in our everyday life. I will ensure additional funding for education programs that highlight the impacts of climate change and how we can do our part to mitigate the effects.

Economy

Embracing innovation is one of the most important factors in building an economy that works for everyone in our city. I have seen first-hand the impact that fostering innovation has on economic growth. On the City Council, I intend to find creative new ways to harness and invest in the human capital here and make sure that is at the heart of the jobs engine for all San Diegans. Its critical that we also work closely with our education institutions like UCSD to make sure we equip the next generation of job seekers with the skills they need to be successful.

Housing

My family currently rents in University City and knows first-hand the struggle it is to try and purchase a house in San Diego. As a City Councilmember, I will make it my mission to ensure that we simplify the process to allow residents to develop Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) and to increase our overall housing supply without compromising our environment. I also believe that homeowners living on-site should be allowed to rent their extra rooms as an alternative income stream, however speculators looking to create pop-up hotels should not be allowed to circumvent existing zoning laws.

Infrastructure

A strong infrastructure is the backbone of a strong economy. Working through the City and SANDAG, I would make sure that the infrastructure needs of tomorrow are prioritized today. We invested a lot in bringing the trolley to District 1, we must now invest in local connective networks to maximize the trolley’s utility and ensure that it is accessible for all of our residents and not just those who live closest. Beyond the mega projects, I will not forget the everyday needs of our community. I will focus on upgrading our existing parks, libraries, and pools. We also need to fill the potholes, make sure our bridges are safe, our sidewalks are maintained, bike paths are upgraded, and that there are enough EV charging stations.

Public Safety

The most important job of the City Council is the safety and security of the residents. I strongly support legislation like AB298 which explores a home purchase assistance program that recognizes the need for first responders to be able to live within the communities they serve. I look forward to leveraging my experience in innovation to bring cutting-edge technology to increase public safety, making sure our communities are safer and our tax dollars go further.